Canopy-insulator.



E. E. BEOHTOLD.

CANOPY INSULATOE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 19. 1907.

91 7,238 Patented Apr. 6, 1909.

7N2 mums PETERS 50., wnsnmamu, D. c.

EDMUND E. BECHTOLD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CANOPY-INSULATOB.

Application filed July 19, 1907.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 6, 1909.

Serial No. 384,503.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDMUND E. BEoHroLD, a citizen of the United Fatates,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Canopy-Insulators, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain improvements in that class ofinsulators, or means for insulating, which are particularly adapted anddesigned for use in connection. with canopies, such as are employed forelectric-light fixtures or combination-fixtures, that is, fix tureswhich may be used for electric-lighting or gas illumination, in order toinsulate them from the walls and ceilings of rooms or other supportstherefor, but which are also applica 1e to and may be used forinsulating analogous devices, and the objects of the invention are toprovide flexible insulators or insulating means of the abovenamedcharacter, which may be carried in stock, in the form of long strips, orin coils, so that they can be cut into the desired lengths to suit thevarious sizes, styles and shapes of canopies manufactured by differentfirms, and which shall be adapted for ready application to canopies orother devices of circular, rectangular, polygonal, or other shapes, oreasily removed therefrom to permit repairs or refinishing. I

Another object is to provide means for protecting the insulatingmaterial and for firmly holding it in place, and so as to affordmoistureand dust proof insulation.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be disclosed in thesubjoined description and explanation.

The invention consists in certain novel features of the construction,combination. and arrangement of the parts of the insulator, as will behereinafter more fully set forth and specifically claimed.

In the accompanying drawing, which serves to illustrate my inventionFigure 1 is a view in elevation of a canopy partly broken awayillustrating the annular bead thereon, and showing one form of theinvention ap plied to its enlarged or upper end. Fig. 2 is a face viewof a portion of a blank out of which the metal protecting strips forholding and protecting the insulating material is formed. 3 is an innerview of a portion of the metallic protecting or holding strip for theinsulating material, showing the means of securing its meeting endstogether. Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line l4.- of Fig. 3. Figs.5 and 6 are external views, showing portions of the protecting stripseparated, and illustrating modified means for connecting their meetingends together. Fig. 7 is a fragmental perspective view of a portion ofthe protecting strip. Fig. 8 is a sectional view of a portion of acanopy, showing a modified form in the construction of the protectingstrip applied thereto; and Fig. 9 is a similar view of like parts,showing a modification in the construction and arrangement of theinsulating material.

Like numerals of reference refer to corre sponding parts throughout thedifferent views of the drawing.

The reference numeral 12 designates a canopy of the ordinary or anypreferred construction, but which in the present instance is shown assubstantially bell or conical shaped, and which may be mounted on afixture (not shown) so as to cover the juncture of the fixture with thewall pipe or wire, and which canopy it is desirable to insulate from thewall or other support in order to prevent the current becoming groundedon account of the moisture in the wall or support, or by reason of itselectric conductivity.

In ig. 1 of the drawing 1 have shown the canopy 12 as having appliedthereto on the exterior of its enlarged end a strip of insulatingmaterial 13, which may be made of fiber, mica, vulcanized rubber,okonite, or other suitable material, and has its upper or outer portionbent inwardly to form a flange 14. to rest on or be located beyond thefree end. of the rim 15 of the canopy. This material is held in positionon the canopy by means of a protecting and holding strlp 16, which ispreferably of metal and of a width to correspond with the desired widthof the insulating material. 13, which is first placed on the peripheryof the enlarged end of the canopy, and when in the form of okonite tapeor ruhher friction tape, so that its upper portion will overlap the freeend of the rim 15 of the canopy, and thus form the inwardly projectingflange 14, but it will be understood that if less flexible insulatingmaterial, such as fiher, mica or vulcanized rubber, is employed, theflange 14 may be otherwise formed or produced.

The protecting or holding strip 16, as

before stated, is preferal'ily made of metal, and in order to economizein the material used, and also in order to provide the strip with aflange, which when applied to the canopy will be an inturned one Withoutmaterially decreasing the flexibility of the metal, I prefer to form twoof such strips 16 out of a single blank or strip 17 (see Fig. 2) which 1accomplish in the following manner. The strip 17, which may be of anysuitable size and material, but preferably metal, is dividedlongitudinally at about its middle on an offset line 18, which offsetsare preferably rectangular in shape, as shown, so as to form, when thepieces 16 formed out of the single piece 17 are separated, a series ofspaced-apart projections 19 on the adjacent edges of the pieces 16,which projections may be turned to substantially rigl'it angles to thepieces 16, as shown in Fig. 7, so that when the protecting strip 16 isapplied to the outer surface of the insulating material the spacedprojections 19 will overlap the flange 14 of said material, as will bereadily understood by reference to Figs. 1 and 9 of the drawing.

While I prefer to make the strips 16 out of a single piece of metal 17as shown in Fig. 2 and above-described, yet 1 do not desire to belimited to this method, nor do 1 wish it understood that the projections19 and their intervening spaces shall be rectangular in shape, as it isevident th at they may be otherwise formed, so as to provide flexibilityto the metal strips. In. order to secure the meeting ends of the strips1.6 together, I prefer to form each of them near their said. ends with atransverse slot 20 and an outwardly projecting offset ortion 21 toreceive a link 22, formed of feXible material, which. has its endspassed from the outer surface of the strip 16 inwardly through the slots20 and then clenched on the inner surface of the strip 1.6, as shown inl igs. 1, 3- and 4 of the drawing, thus providing a fastening for themeeting ends of the strip 16, which will be flush with the inner surfacethereof, so as not to interfere with the insulating material. Instead ofusing this method of fastening the meeting ends of the strip together,.1 may provide the strip near one of its ends with a transverse slot 23and the other end of the strip with. a tongue 24, which may be insertedin said slot and bent backwardly upon itself, so as to firmly hold theends together, as will be understood by reference to Fig. 5, or 1 mayform each. of the meeting ends with a tongue 25 to be passed alternatelyinwardly and outwardly through slots 26 near their meeting ends, andthen bent back upon themselves, so as to firmly hold the ends of thestrip together.

In some instances where it is desired to provide means to fit thecanopies around moldings or pipes without interfering with theinsulation, 1 provide a protecting or holding strip 16", which may haveits ends provided with any of the abovenamed means for securing themtogether, or otherwise, and which is formed at a suitable point betweenits edges with a series of spaced apart and inwardly bent loops orportions 19*, which, when the strip is placed in position on the canopy12 and insulating material 13, will rest on the outer or free edge ofthe latter, as is clearly shown in Fig. 8 of the drawing, in which viewthe canopy 12 is shown as being provided with an annular external bead27 located at a suitable distance from the free end of the rim 15thereof, so that the insulating material 13 may rest thereon. mentionedfigure of the drawing,'it is aparent that the upper or outerportion of t1e strip 16, which is insulated from the canopy 12, may be provided withan opening or openings, through which a pipe or a piece of molding orother obstruction on the wall or support may be passed withoutdestroying the insulation.

in 9 is shown still another modification, in which. the canopy 12 isprovided with an annular head 27 at a suitable distance from the freeedge of its rim 15, and on which a piece of fiber, mica or vulcanizedrubber 28 located on the outer surface of the rim 15 may rest at itslower edge, and around the piece or material 28 may be placed olronitetape, rubber or friction tape 29, which may have its upper portioninturned, as shown, and may be held in position by means of a protectingand holding strip 16 of the same construction as that shown in Figs. 1and 7 and above-described.

lirom the foregoing and by reference to the drawing, it will be readilyunderstood and clearly seen that insulating means constructed accordingto my invention is adaptable for application to canopies of variousshapes and sizes, and that it may be readily applied thereto or removedtherefrom, and that the protecting and holding strips can be made instandard lengths or sizes, with or without any of the disclosed meansfor securin their meeting ends together, and carried in stock to besupplied to the trade on demand.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters-Patent, is-

In a canopy insulator, the combination with a canopy having an externalannular bead at a distance from its rim, of insulating material locatedon the canopy and resting at one of its edges on said bead, a rotectingand holding strip surrounding sai material and provided with inturnedspaced apart By reference to the above projections above the edge of thematerial opposite that which rests on the bead and above the free edgeof the rim of the canopy, the said strip being provided near each of itsends with an outwardly extending upset portion, and a link presentingits ends inwardly l of the strip and located in the said slots and iupset portions to secure the ends of the strip together.

EDMUND E. BECHTOLD.

Witnesses:

CHAS. A. TILLMAN, M. A. NYMAN.

